UNION BEACH - The Bayshore Regional Sewerage Authority is holding the first of two scheduled "open house" meetings at its facility on Saturday to discuss its plans to build a 380-foot tall energy-producing wind turbine.

The first meeting, set for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the BRSA's facility at 100 Oak St., is open to Union Beach residents only.

A second meeting, open to all Monmouth County residents, will be held in December. The date has not been set, said Robert C. Fischer, executive director of the BRSA.

Fischer said the meeting is to give borough residents the opportunity to ask questions about the turbine.

Union Beach officials have opposed the project, and they sent a formal objection in writing to the state Department of Environmental Protection in September.

Union Beach Mayor Paul J. Smith Jr. said the borough has "some concerns" about the turbine project, but said the council is "willing to meet with them and talk about it."

The wind turbine would be built at the west end of the 1.2-square-mile borough and could generate 1.5 megawatts of electricity per hour.

It would be perched on a pedestal constructed on a concrete pad over 24 pilings adjacent to Raritan Bay, and would include three 118-foot blades attached to a 260-foot tower for a total height of approximately 380 feet.

The BRSA has already been given the OK by the DEP to go out to bid for construction of the turbine.

The project price tag is estimated at around $7.7 million.

However, there are a few more DEP administrative steps to complete before the authority can start pouring the concrete.

The DEP first must formally adopt a set of guidelines and regulations, proposed in September, for wind turbines, DEP spokeswoman Karen Hershey said.